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Human Papillomavirus (HPV)

Thanks to Pap tests, fatal cervical cancers are almost unknown today in rich countries. But the disease kills an estimated 275,000 women a year in poor countries where Pap tests are impractical and the vaccine is far too expensive for the average woman to afford, so the price cut could lead to a significant advance in women’s health.

Cervical cancer is one of the leading causes of cancer-related deaths among women in Latin America and the Caribbean. For example, of the 80,000 new cases and 36,000 cervical cancer deaths reported in the Americas in 2008 alone, Latin American and Caribbean countries accounted for the vast majority.

Sabin Executive Vice-President, Ciro de Quadros, M.D., M.P.H., recently co-authored two new papers that will appear this month in the Strüngmann Forum Report entitled, "Disease Eradication in the 21st Century: Implications for Global Health.” The